The government is said to have denied the Dalai Lama and Rebiya Kadeer visas to Taiwan.

Taiwan News  
Date: 2019/06/05
By: Yu Ping

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – The administration of Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) is accused of denying the Dalai Lama and Uyghur activist Rebiya Kadeer visas to visit Taiwan in May, reported Radio Free Asia (RFA) on Thursday (May 30).

The news of the Dalai Lama and Kadeer being denied entry into Taiwan has been confirmed by several religious groups. Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council (MAC), however, denies receiving a visa application for the Dalai Lama.

An exclusive source from Washington D.C. told Taiwan News the Tsai administration had promised to invite the Dalai Lama to the Taiwan International Religious Freedom Forum, which took place in Hsinchu on May 30.

RFA interviewed several participants at the forum, including Bob Fu (傅希秋), founder and president of China Aid; Umit Hamit of the World Uyghur Congress; and Dawa Tsering, chairman of the Tibet Religious Foundation of His Holiness The Dalai Lama.
[FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2019/06/05
By: William Yen 

Taipei, June 5 (CNA) Over 500 Muslims gathered Wednesday at Taipei Main Station, the main transport hub of Taiwan’s capital, to celebrate Eid al-Fitr, the “festival of the breaking of the fast,” as they bid farewell to Ramadan, the ninth month on the Islamic calendar.

The roughly 500-600 Muslims, mainly Indonesian migrant workers, joined their counterparts around the world in celebrating Eid al-Fitr by sharing food and exchanging blessings at the event, which was organized by the Taipei City Foreign and Disabled Labor Office.

Gifts, including environmentally re-usable eating utensils or fans, were given to attendees who uploaded photos of themselves participating at the event on Facebook, while picnic blankets were also given to those who took part in a Chinese word game.

Taipei Department of Labor Commissioner Lai Hsiang-lin (賴香伶) handed out traditional Taiwan fragrant sachets to those who attended the event as a way to wish them peace and well-being and to make them feel that they are cared for.    [FULL  STORY]

Radio Taiwan International 
Date: 03 June, 2019
By: Jake Chen

The upcoming Dragon Boat Festival brings to mind a number of traditional activities, including dragon boat races and eating Zongzi, or pyramid-shaped rice dumplings. Farmers in northwest Taiwan have found a creative way to add to the festive atmosphere.

A rice paddy in Miaoli County, northern Taiwan, shows the pattern of a dragon boat carrying zongzi, the rice dumplings which are commonly eaten during the Dragon Boat Festival.

In order to create the complex patterns in the fields, local farmers planted four different types of rice with green, yellow, white, and purple leaves. With careful planning, the farmers were able to plant the rice to create a giant picture of a dragon boat, complete with vivid details, such as eyes and horns.    [FULL  STORY]

Fox News
Date: June 3, 2019
By: Associated Press

TAIPEI, Taiwan – Taiwan is lashing out at the Chinese defense minister’s renewed threat

to use force to assert China’s claim to the island, accusing Beijing of creating unease in the region and seeking to “expand its hegemony.”

A statement from the Cabinet’s Mainland Affairs Council targets comments by Wei Fenghe on Sunday in which he said China would “resolutely take action” to defend its claim to Taiwan and the South China Sea.

The council asserted later Sunday that Taiwan has never been a part of the People’s Republic of China and would never accept Beijing’s threats. It accused China of “challenging international norms and order” and said Beijing’s claim to seek peaceful development had been recognized internationally as “a lie of the ages.”    [FULL  STORY]

Research shows Taiwan’s university tuition is higher than what the public would expect.

Taiwan News
Date: 2019/06/04
By: Judy Lo, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – The Taiwan Higher Education Union said on Monday (June 3) that Taiwan’s university tuition fees rank 14th in the world according to the latest research done by its youth action committee.

Committee chairman, Su Tzu-hsuan (蘇子軒) told reporters at a press conference that after adjusting for purchasing power parity (PPP), Taiwan’s average university tuition ranks number 14 among the world’s richest 100 countries according to GDP.

Su said the committee found that Taiwan’s university tuition averaged US$6,218, higher than the global mean of US$3,055 and median of US$1,774.

In response, Chu Chun-chang (朱俊彰), head of the Department of Higher Education at the Ministry of Education (MOE), told the Central News Agency on Monday that it was not entirely accurate to compare numbers when talking about tuition. “We must also take the evolution of higher education and taxation into consideration,” said Chu.
[FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2019/06/03
By: Huang Li-yun, Tyson Lu, Wang Shwu-fen and Chung Yu-chen

Taipei, June 3 (CNA) Kaohsiung mayor and presidential hopeful Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) of the opposition Kuomintang (KMT) will hold a rally as scheduled in a Hualien night market June 8, despite a fire that broke out there early Monday, according to several KMT councilors.

The blaze, which broke out at the Dongdamen Night Market in Hualien City at about 1 a.m. and burnt 42 stalls to the ground, was extinguished after an hour, the Hualien County Fire Department said, adding that no casualties were reported, as most of the vendors were closed at the time.

The department said the cause of the fire is under investigation.

A blaze broke out at the Dongdamen Night Market in Hualien City on June 3 (photo from Hualien Association Facebook)

However, the fire has not deterred Han from seeking public support in eastern Taiwan for his presidential bid, as a rally held in Taipei June 1 drew nearly 400,000 people chanting “Han Kuo-yu, president of the common people,” according to the organizers. Police, however, put the number at a mere 70,000.    [FULL  STORY]

Straits Times
Date: June 2, 2019
By: Bhagyashree Garekar Deputy Foreign Editor

SINGAPORE – Chinese Defence Minister Wei Fenghe’s tough words on Taiwan and its military activities in the South China Sea were directed primarily towards the audience back home, a top United States official attending the Shangri-La Dialogue said on Sunday (June 2).

Providing the first official US response to General Wei’s speech at the Dialogue, Ms Andrea Thompson, the Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security, said: “As I took it, it seemed very tailored towards his leadership.”

In his speech, Gen Wei warned Washington not to interfere in security disputes over Taiwan and the South China Sea.

“If anyone dares to split Taiwan from China, the Chinese military has no choice but to fight at all costs for national unity,” he said in his speech.    [FULL  STORY]

Taiwan’s flag made an appearance at the 2019 USAFA graduation ceremony

Taiwan News
Date: 2019/06/02
By: Duncan DeAeth, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – The Taiwanese flag made an appearance at the 2019 graduation ceremony of the United States Air Force Academy this past week (May 30).

Taiwan was identified as a nation by one U.S. Air Force official presiding over the ceremony, when he introduced the graduating cadets from 10 foreign nations including Taiwan.

“We are also pleased to have in the class graduates from ten foreign nations. They will stand as I recognize their nations. We have students representing the nation of Kazakhstan, the Republic of Korea, Romania, Rwanda, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand, the Philippines, Singapore and Tunisia.”

When the officer called out Taiwan, a member of the graduating class presumed to be the Taiwanese national unfurled the Taiwanese flag in the crowd.    [FULL  STORY]